I also am not crazy about the length of the chapters since this is a portable device. It is not meant to be played in large chunks of time. As long as there is a check point/save at least every 10-15 minutes though, all will be good. Looking forward to this...maybe I'll even get around to playing the trilogy (which I have) before this releases.

I also am not crazy about the length of the chapters since this is a portable device. It is not meant to be played in large chunks of time. As long as there is a check point/save at least every 10-15 minutes though, all will be good. Looking forward to this...maybe I'll even get around to playing the trilogy (which I have) before this releases.

Click to expand...

The bottom three paragraphs have nothing to do with Killzone: Mercenary; it's just his own opinion that genuinely does not matter in this preview.

"Though the design of Sony's handheld is certainly sleek, it doesn't cater to the placement of fingers while playing a physically demanding game like Killzone."
---Cramped hands is something bothersome for some, and something completely absent for others. Some can't hold a 3DS or Vita for more than twenty minutes, some can hold it for four hours. Really, there's no point to even bring this up; there have been two FPS' on the system already, and there have been demanding games such as Soul Sacrifice; we all know that there are plenty who can play the thing without cramping, and therefore wny waste precious preview space talking about so invisible a complaint and not the actual game I came to read about.

"It took me the better part of an hour to complete a single chapter... This seems to go against the bite-sized nature of many of my all-time favorite portable games."
I've been saying this for about a decade and I'd really thought the Vita and 3DS would smash this notion; just because a game is on a portable does not mean the game must be tailored to portable design (short-burst gameplay). The vita's tagline is "console quality;" well, there have been console quality titles on portables since the GBA, with stuff like Golden Sun and the first of Fire Emblem localizations. Really, there is no reason to criticize the missions for being long; the Vita can obviously handle more than adequately the very "stuff" that models and shapes cinematic and inspiring modern game design, and so really I'd much rather hear about whether or not there is a consistent focus of originality and variety in these hour length missions, rather than this guys preference for simple titles--- a preference, again, that I don't care to hear about inside this preview of a game that he isn't previewing.

"Over the past year, my Vita has pretty much become a device for indie games that can be played in small doses... it seems like there needs to be a sweet spot between Black Ops: Declassified's minute-long missions and Mercenary's extended levels"
I have no idea what he's talking about with this. What, exactly, makes Guacamelee "best played in small doses?" It's a friggin' Metroidvania game; I played the thing for four hours straight, and I'm sure most of you guys did as well. But still; I also played Sound Shapes, which has miniature levels, straight through despite its small missions--- but even if I did take a break from it between them--- I mean, does any of this matter, at all? The Vita is not a telephone; it can handle core games and their experiences, and so why he is so stuck on this, inside of a preview for a friggin' 1st party experience like Killzone--- I just don't get it.

He doesn't talk about the mission he played beyond that single paragraph about stealth gameplay--- which he doesn't even really describe. This is an absolutely huge title for the Vita that I'm genuinely starving for information on--- and yet, Marty spends this preview talking about his hands, other games, preferences, etc. It's a garbage preview.

It must just be me then, but, the little he did talk about the stealth and other options available to him were enough for me right now. Normally I would never have even read any of that as when there is a game I know I want,I tend to stay away from as much news about it as possible.

Also the paragraph you feel were completely unnecessary do give some info that some may like to know (although, true he didn't need as much personal details).

I mean, if you are someone whose hand cramps it is something they would like to know. Personally, this is something I don't get. If your hands are cramping you are holding it too tight, relax. My hands are big and I never have this issue.

How would shorter chapters hurt those who do play for extended periods of time? Like you pointed out, you just kept playing. However, for those of us who don't always have a block of time that there may be no interruptions shorter is better. Instead of having 9 chapters there would not have been anything wrong with having, say, 20. But, as I said, simple check points/saves every so often works just as well.

As far as a "preview" goes, sure there could have been more, but it isn't as though this didn't serve any purpose at all.

I also am not crazy about the length of the chapters since this is a portable device. It is not meant to be played in large chunks of time. As long as there is a check point/save at least every 10-15 minutes though, all will be good. Looking forward to this...maybe I'll even get around to playing the trilogy (which I have) before this releases.

Click to expand...

The bottom three paragraphs have nothing to do with Killzone: Mercenary; it's just his own opinion that genuinely does not matter in this preview.

"Though the design of Sony's handheld is certainly sleek, it doesn't cater to the placement of fingers while playing a physically demanding game like Killzone."
---Cramped hands is something bothersome for some, and something completely absent for others. Some can't hold a 3DS or Vita for more than twenty minutes, some can hold it for four hours. Really, there's no point to even bring this up; there have been two FPS' on the system already, and there have been demanding games such as Soul Sacrifice; we all know that there are plenty who can play the thing without cramping, and therefore wny waste precious preview space talking about so invisible a complaint and not the actual game I came to read about.

"It took me the better part of an hour to complete a single chapter... This seems to go against the bite-sized nature of many of my all-time favorite portable games."
I've been saying this for about a decade and I'd really thought the Vita and 3DS would smash this notion; just because a game is on a portable does not mean the game must be tailored to portable design (short-burst gameplay). The vita's tagline is "console quality;" well, there have been console quality titles on portables since the GBA, with stuff like Golden Sun and the first of Fire Emblem localizations. Really, there is no reason to criticize the missions for being long; the Vita can obviously handle more than adequately the very "stuff" that models and shapes cinematic and inspiring modern game design, and so really I'd much rather hear about whether or not there is a consistent focus of originality and variety in these hour length missions, rather than this guys preference for simple titles--- a preference, again, that I don't care to hear about inside this preview of a game that he isn't previewing.

"Over the past year, my Vita has pretty much become a device for indie games that can be played in small doses... it seems like there needs to be a sweet spot between Black Ops: Declassified's minute-long missions and Mercenary's extended levels"
I have no idea what he's talking about with this. What, exactly, makes Guacamelee "best played in small doses?" It's a friggin' Metroidvania game; I played the thing for four hours straight, and I'm sure most of you guys did as well. But still; I also played Sound Shapes, which has miniature levels, straight through despite its small missions--- but even if I did take a break from it between them--- I mean, does any of this matter, at all? The Vita is not a telephone; it can handle core games and their experiences, and so why he is so stuck on this, inside of a preview for a friggin' 1st party experience like Killzone--- I just don't get it.

He doesn't talk about the mission he played beyond that single paragraph about stealth gameplay--- which he doesn't even really describe. This is an absolutely huge title for the Vita that I'm genuinely starving for information on--- and yet, Marty spends this preview talking about his hands, other games, preferences, etc. It's a garbage preview.

It must just be me then, but, the little he did talk about the stealth and other options available to him were enough for me right now. Normally I would never have even read any of that as when there is a game I know I want,I tend to stay away from as much news about it as possible.

Also the paragraph you feel were completely unnecessary do give some info that some may like to know (although, true he didn't need as much personal details).

I mean, if you are someone whose hand cramps it is something they would like to know. Personally, this is something I don't get. If your hands are cramping you are holding it too tight, relax. My hands are big and I never have this issue.

How would shorter chapters hurt those who do play for extended periods of time? Like you pointed out, you just kept playing. However, for those of us who don't always have a block of time that there may be no interruptions shorter is better. Instead of having 9 chapters there would not have been anything wrong with having, say, 20. But, as I said, simple check points/saves every so often works just as well.

As far as a "preview" goes, sure there could have been more, but it isn't as though this didn't serve any purpose at all.

Click to expand...

I agree, but I just expect more from a preview. I mean, it's a preview--- it's a pretty big deal, and for journalists I just feel like they should really assess the privilege they're granted with playing these early builds and to offer with their article something genuinely dedicated to that item. I just feel like there is a lot more that the preview could have offered to Killzone: Mercenary itself. Hell, even if it was just a personal blog about how he felt with the game then that would have been good enough, but as it is it's really 40% killzone, and 60% other.

I highly recommend the trigger grips for anyone with a vita. I didn't find it painful without them per se, but I found it extremely difficult to play skillfully. Hard to word it, but the grip is great, and I never take it off.

On the matter of the long levels, there seems to be a bit of a divide in the consensus at IGN. Some of the Vita reviews (most) have been comparisons between a console experience and the actual experience that has been delivered to the portable. This is mostly Sony's fault for pushing the Vita as a console experience on the go, but now there seems to be some sort of negativity towards long levels? It seems like no matter what the Vita does, its feedback as accurate as it should be. This is my opinion anyway. I take advantage of a lot of demo's and game play videos on youtube before buying anything for it. My own opinion seems oddly the best at deciphering what I enjoy. I'm hoping that they release a demo sometime after the beta but before the launch.

I have Persona 4, Soul Sacrifice, Disgaea 3, Gravity Rush etc. yet to finish in the mean time and I'm sure I'll sink a few dozen hours into Virtue's Last Reward when it comes out on + later this month.

I agree, the editor lacks a concise presence in his writing. And he mentions analog sticks being uncomfortable, this has been stated previously in reviews for other shooters.

However, this being a personal issue, personally I found the 3DS to be very clunky and edgy in its design, and was uncomfortable for me to hold, especially in games like Kid Icarus. If its a design flaw such as the lack of a second analog stick or support for the circle pad pro, that's understandable. But you have to take into account that the experience can be completely acceptable for others. Its good to mention, but shouldn't warrant a hefty penalty.

As Vita consumers we work with what we have, the Vita, so does Sony, and Guerilla Cambridge, and Media Molecule, so in all due respect, so should the editor, or IGN. You cannot knock off the concept of an FPS on the Vita because it lacks the appropriate form factor, that's like me not wanting to play Skyward Sword on the Wii because I have to waggle in order to use my sword. The editor who reviewed that game could've said, "what the **** is this, I don't want this, I want normal Zelda where I can press B to attack!". But no, he went with the gimmick, understanding that if Zelda is to exist on the Wii, this is how its gonna be, and ended up enjoying himself.

I also disagree that the Vita is becoming primarily supported and driven by indie titles. I'm glad they are thriving in their success, but any Vita owner on this board can show you their game collection and prove otherwise, indie games and bigger budget titles can completely co-exist on the Vita.

Otherwise he touches on some things I want to know, I already know the game is going to be gorgeous so I don't need them to constantly reiterate it. I like hour long chapters, I'm assuming this is probably due to many firefights that will be encountered along a linear path. Sounds like KZ to me, and unlike the editor, I don't find my all time favorite portable games to be bite sized, and wouldn't use that to discredit a game attempting to serve a good amount of content. He's not necessarily saying that's bad, just that an hour each is too long, opting for a 30-45 minute long chapter, or less...luckily for me, my Vita came with a sleep function, so it doesn't bother me that much.

I want to know how the AI is in this game. I will mostly play it online, but also I want to know if, like its console brethren, it has bots for offline matches. I wanna know just how steadily the framerate runs and when he touches on combat getting hairy, how hairy we talking here? I am going to get a grip attachment soon anyway, if I feel my hands get cramped I'll just use that.